Chapter 1149: Heavenly Calamity Descends 2.0

Since Wu Guike had restrained Yun Che, he certainly didn't intend to kill him. He gasped heavily, finally calming down a little, desperately suppressing the urge to tear Yun Che to pieces. In a dark, measured tone, he said, "If I agree to your terms... how can you guarantee that the Profound Image Stone will never appear in the world again!"

At this point, despite his extreme rage and utter humiliation, he had no choice but to admit defeat.

Indeed, as Yun Che said, being killed by him once, though a tremendous humiliation, would not affect his entry into the second round of preliminaries, nor would it impact subsequent matches. There would be no loss in terms of outcome.

However, if Yun Che really exposed the Profound Image Stone, the consequences would be absolutely unbearable for him.

"Why did another Profound Image Stone, identical to the one from years ago, reappear? Could the one I obtained with the Nine-Star Buddha God Jade have been swapped by the Sirius Star God at some point? No! I specifically examined it after I got it. Then there's only one possibility..."

The Sirius Star God must have created two identical Profound Image Stones at the same time back then!

As for how it ended up in Yun Che's hands, Wu Guike's mind was in such turmoil that he had no time to consider it.

"I cannot guarantee that," Yun Che replied without hesitation.

"You..."

"Young Master Wu," Yun Che said with a smile, "If I told you I'd immediately destroy the Profound Image Stone after the deal is done, would you believe me? And I certainly wouldn't be so foolish as to hand it over to you, as that would be signing my own death warrant. On the contrary, I'll keep it safely preserved, lest it accidentally fall into someone else's hands, or even yours, Young Master Wu."

"But you can rest assured," Yun Che continued unhurriedly, "I, Yun Che, have no past grievances, recent animosity, or deep-seated hatred towards you, Young Master Wu. I only resorted to this desperate measure today out of necessity. As long as you don't trouble me in the future, I wouldn't go so far as to risk my life to fight you to the death. Perhaps I'm even more afraid of it being leaked than you are, aren't I?"

Crack.

With a crisp sound, Wu Guike actually clenched his right finger bone so hard it snapped.

In other words, Yun Che was saying: Believe it or not, you have to believe it! You need this done, but I won't hand over my leverage. Not only will you be unable to seek retribution later, but I might even use it to extort you again in the future.

This was utterly outrageous!

Time was relentless; the first preliminary round could end at any moment. Yun Che was even more anxious than Wu Guike, but his expression and eyes remained perfectly calm. His words were sometimes firm, sometimes gentle, sometimes soft, sometimes hard, pressing relentlessly, yet also showing weakness at opportune moments...

He had poured all his efforts into securing this deal with Wu Guike.

"Young Master Wu, you'd best make a decision quickly," Yun Che drawled, seemingly unconcerned. "The preliminary match might end at the next breath; if it does, you'll miss your chance!"

The last sentence, with its sudden emphasis, struck directly at Wu Guike's heart.

"Alright... alright!" Wu Guike's face was crimson as blood, his scalp tingling wildly. All the anger and humiliation he had ever felt in his life probably couldn't compare to this moment. "I admit defeat!"

"But, Yun Che... you remember this: you'd better guard that Profound Image Stone as if it were your own father. If it ever gets out... even if you escape to the edge of chaos, I will make you regret ever coming into this world!"

"Congratulations, Young Master Wu, on making the correct choice," Yun Che said with a faint smile. "Let's begin."

Crack!

Another finger was snapped by Wu Guike, yet he felt no pain. He took a few more deep breaths, using all his rationality to forcibly swallow the endless resentment and humiliation.

With a faint burst of air, the aura that had confined Yun Che instantly dissipated. Although Wu Guike said nothing, the profound energy on his body began to rapidly retract, until even his last protective profound energy was completely withdrawn.

However, his entire body trembled uncontrollably, every vein bulging prominently.

Wu Guike's capitulation and his current state ignited wild joy within Yun Che. His hands also trembled slightly. He calmly stepped behind Wu Guike, gathered profound energy, and suddenly struck, fiercely blasting Wu Guike's back.

Boom!!

Under normal circumstances, Yun Che could not possibly harm Wu Guike. But with all his profound energy defenses lowered, how could his mere physical body withstand Yun Che's full-power strike? Amidst a tremendous roar, Wu Guike was directly blasted through from back to chest. Flesh and internal organs flew, and his entire body was torn in two mid-air, flying a great distance before finally falling to the ground.

"Don't... let me... see... you... again..."

The upper half of Wu Guike's body uttered a hateful, strained sound before vanishing without a trace in a flash of white light.

At the same time, another beam of white light suddenly descended from the sky, landing on Yun Che, causing his soul bead count to skyrocket, finally stopping at 1.95 million.

Yun Che's rank in the Ninth Battlefield soared like a rocket from the very last position, climbing directly to fourth place... less than 100,000 soul beads shy of third place.

Wu Guike's soul bead count, on the other hand, plummeted by 1.95 million, yet he still remained first in the Ninth Battlefield.

Conjuring the Ninth Battlefield's ranking list with his mind, Yun Che smiled with satisfaction as he looked at his name. The coldness and heaviness that had filled his chest completely vanished.

Fate had played a cruel joke on him, yet he had found another door.

"There's always a way out," Yun Che murmured with a faint smile.

Although Wu Guike was of noble status, possessed extraordinary talent, and astonishing cultivation, he was excessively arrogant, had terrible character, and was even involved with his own aunt by marriage. Yun Che held him in great contempt.

But now, in Yun Che's eyes, Wu Guike was nothing short of an angel sent by heaven to save him!

Princess Caizhi could never have imagined that the two Profound Image Stones she had playfully given Yun Che years ago would save him from such a desperate situation at this very moment.

And through a butterfly effect, they had altered Yun Che's life trajectory, and even... the destiny of the entire God Realm.

Within the Heaven Smiting Pearl, at the Divine Martial Sect.

"Sect Master, something strange has happened."

An old man bowed low behind a middle-aged man, reporting, "Just now, Young Master Guike's ranking suddenly plummeted, and his soul bead count directly dropped by thirty percent."

"Oh?" The middle-aged man turned around. Dressed in a gleaming golden robe, with eyebrows like stars and a crescent moon, his imposing aura readily inspired awe. If his identity were revealed, it would be enough to shock countless profound practitioners of the God Realm out of their wits.

He was the Great Realm King of the Divine Martial Realm, Wu Guike's birth father—Wu Sanzun!

"So, Ke'er actually lost once? Heh, that's interesting," Wu Sanzun said, neither surprised nor angry, but rather intrigued.

"In the battlefield where Young Master Guike is, there should be no one who can match him, not even those who could barely contend. This old servant believes that Young Master must have accidentally fallen into a deadly natural disaster or encountered an extremely high-level profound beast," the elder calmly analyzed.

"That's fine," Wu Sanzun said lightly. "Although Ke'er has ample talent, his life has been too smooth, making him overly arrogant. A setback will only benefit him. A mere preliminary ranking, whether first or ten thousandth, makes no difference. There's no need to mind."

"This old servant thinks the same," the elder said, bowing again. "Since that is the case, Sect Master, please rest. This old servant will take his leave."

Wu Guike's sudden drop in ranking and soul beads naturally drew a great deal of attention. After all, he had previously been among the top twenty. His name suddenly disappearing made it hard not to notice.

But it was merely noticed. Everyone assumed he must have suffered a setback. As for how... even the Divine Martial Sect didn't care, let alone others.

After all, this was only the first preliminary round. As Wu Sanzun said, there was no essential difference between first place and ten thousandth place.

However, all profound practitioners in the Ninth Battlefield could clearly see a completely unfamiliar name suddenly appear in fourth place as if from the heavens. His total number of soul beads coincidentally matched the exact number Wu Guike had lost.

In the main city of the Ninth Battlefield, Xiao Mo stared, dumbfounded, at "Yun Che" suddenly appearing on the list. Before he could fully process it, a white light suddenly descended not far in front of him, and a golden figure was swiftly expelled. A quick mental scan clearly revealed the name "Wu Guike."

"Yun... Che..." Wu Guike muttered with hatred, his face alternating between crimson and dark, his internal energy chaotic as if boiling.

Xiao Mo stared blankly at Wu Guike for a moment, then heard him utter "Yun Che." He then stared at Yun Che's name on the list again, and the simultaneous change in both their soul bead counts...

After a long silence, he looked up and mumbled, "It seems some dirty deal must have taken place."

Boom—

Space vibrated, clouds churned, and the voice of the Heaven Smiting Realm, announcing the end of the first preliminary round, finally rang out: "Young powerhouses, your battlefield will temporarily conclude. The first preliminary round ends at this moment. The top ten ranked individuals in each battlefield will remain here, while all others will now depart. Your true forms will appear before the major teleportation arrays outside the Heaven Smiting Realm. May this fierce battle, into which you poured all your profound energy and will, become a lifelong asset to you."

Clang!!

Following the majestic sound of the Heaven Smiting Realm, an overwhelming white light descended from the sky, covering everyone.

Within the white light, the projections scattered across the battlefield, be they humans or profound beasts, rapidly vanished as if dissolved. The month-long brutal battle finally drew to a close at this moment... but not for everyone.

This was because the projections of ten thousand profound practitioners remained, fully present on the battlefield, awaiting the next brutal battle.

These were the victors who had emerged from over fifty million top profound practitioners of the Eastern Divine Region. Every single one of them was, without a doubt, a peerless genius worthy of the world's attention. And accompanying the victory of these ten thousand individuals was the crushing elimination of over fifty million profound practitioners.

As their projections vanished, they awoke outside the Heaven Smiting Realm, standing on the light barrier they had stepped on when approaching it. Not far away were the profound teleportation arrays that could return them to their respective star realms.

The eliminated naturally wouldn't receive much public attention. All eyes were firmly fixed on the new battlefield, which was destined to be even more intense.

The fierce sounds of battle faded, even the roars of profound beasts completely vanished; the entire battlefield fell silent. Confirming that he was still within the battlefield, Yun Che completely relaxed. He had had some slight worries earlier; after all, this was a projection created by the Heaven Smiting Pearl, and it might have extremely strict and fair rules, making it possible for his actions to be judged as cheating and disqualify him...

It seemed he had been worrying for nothing.

"Finally, I can enter the Heaven Smiting Realm. Top ten thousand in the entire Eastern Divine Region..." Yun Che chuckled self-deprecatingly. After all, he had obtained this through what could be called despicable means. "At least I'm qualified to enter the Heaven Smiting God Realm now."

No sooner had he finished muttering than the voice of the Heaven Smiting Realm echoed again from above:

"Young powerhouses who remain on the battlefield, you have proven yourselves with your strength and will. Without a doubt, you are the pride of the Eastern Divine Region, and its future. However, only one thousand individuals can enter the Heaven Smiting Pearl and gain the qualification to cultivate in the Heaven Smiting Divine Realm for three thousand years."

"And what follows is the battlefield that will determine these one thousand individuals!"

At this voice from the Heaven Smiting Realm, every profound practitioner still on the battlefield felt their blood boil. Outside the battlefield, those who had been eliminated, and those ineligible to participate in the Profound God Convention, felt intense envy, jealousy, and yearning in their hearts.

Cultivating for three thousand years within the Heaven Smiting Pearl—a miraculous place, a first in the history of the entire Eastern Divine Region, that could allow a profound practitioner to ascend from "infancy" to greatness in a single leap! It was a gift that any profound practitioner with even the slightest pursuit of the profound way absolutely could not resist!

To seize such an opportunity, they would readily fight tooth and nail, sparing no expense, even if it meant halving their lifespan!

"Next, you will be sent into a single battlefield. This battlefield has no natural disasters, no profound beasts, nothing else to interfere with you. There is only a single safe main city and a battlefield exclusively for you. The rules will be reset, but they will be exactly the same as in the previous battlefield, and all the soul beads you possess will be fully carried over into the new battlefield."

Yun Che listened quietly, but unlike others, he was not tense; on the contrary, he felt a sense of ease he hadn't experienced in a long time.

However, the next announcement from the Heaven Smiting Realm caused his face to suddenly stiffen, and he nearly cursed aloud.

"In the new battlefield, only one thousand individuals can emerge victorious. These one thousand chosen ones will be sent to the Heaven Smiting God Realm for the final decisive battle. After that battle, they may enter the Heaven Smiting Divine Realm, which will change their destinies over the next three years. The other nine thousand will be eliminated from the battlefield, and their true forms will also be expelled from the Heaven Smiting God Realm."